Parents of Schoolgoers  Discussion Forum

Dear All,

Since posted this on Weight issues and DIDN' T hear any feedback, am posting it again here and hope to receive some opinions. Thanks in advance.
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I am mother of 2 kids who are 7 and 3 yrs. old. Both my kids were on the lean side since they were born and infact when I was worried about it a bit in the beginnig, I was told that it' s perfectly ok to be on the slim side, but being healthy is what very important. Which I agreed and never worried about it with my second child..etc.

Now, my problem is just opposite. My older one who was on the slim side till last year, all of a sudden started putting some weight!. I thought, It could be one of those Growth spurts, you know.

she started going to a public school from last year. I guess it' s the school meal that she takes at school, during Lunch time. So I started packing her lunch there after. Though she is involved in many activities (mainly we put her in 2 sports so that she gets more work out time) she seems to be growing on the chubby side.
I' m trying to reduce the junk food items, candy..etc which I buy for her otherwise. I' m trying to tell her nicely that she needs to take more good food, not junks/fats. But at the same time, I do not want to hurt her feelings or I don' t want her to think that she is very fat..etc. Hope I' m doing the right things here...

But she herself one day told me that she wanted to do the ' Elliptical' exercise (the one we got at home for our own use) and then she says that she feels already her tummy went little inside! : (

I feel confused now , whether to agree with her (which might make her feel that she is fat and she might get an impression & hurt feelings), if I disagree, she may not realize the need for controlling, eating good food..etc. I' m totally confused. Pls.help.

Her current weight is 67 lbs (pounds) and she is 7.5 yrs old) Is this overweight?! OR Am I worried unnecessarily?!

Now Please friends, tell me what should I do at this point.

Questions:
1.IS it safe for a 7 year old to use the Elliptical Trainer?! ( I really doubt so). But I need opinions.. (Because I know a mom who let her daughter use the Tread Mill to do regular Walk! - 3 times a week)
2.What other ways/tips that I should follow to make her not to eat fatty foods?
3.How can I handle the situation, I mean low-fat diet to her, while I have another kid (3 yrs) who is afford to eat these items?!

Please please give me some suggestions, opinions here. I appreciate it!
- A very worried Mom.
sandya replied. worried mom,
i can totally understand what you are trying to do and say. Good healthy eating habits must be taught and practiced with kids from the beginning. But it is better late than never. So, first quit worrying. won' t do any of you any good.

second, you can' t change the eating habits of one in the family. It has to be everyone. Eating healthy is really good for everyone, whether big or small. So, here' s what i do at my home. I have 2 kids also(5 and 3). The 5 yr old is on the thinner side and my daghter(3yr) not fussy with food at all and has the tendency of put on weight. So, i keep a close watch as to what i give the both of them. Meaning, there is never any candy at home, no chips, baked snacks or anything of the sort. What i do have is loads of baby carrots in the fridge and lots of vegetables(cauliflower, broccoli, cabbage, green peppers etc.. Your kids learn about the goodness of any kind of food by seeing you enjoy eating it yourself. I eat all of the above mentioned vegetables raw and i truly enjoy it. My daughter will eat raw bhindi(lady' s finger), tindora, beans literally any vegetable.

I make lunch for both the kids myself(rotis, pooris, mac & cheese, vada, idli, pasta) along with a serving of any cooked/steamed vegetable mentioned above. I also pack quarter apple, half a banana, half orange in a zip lock for each of them everyday for snack.

They drink their milk in the morning and leave for school. My son can sustain on milk until his lunch time but my daughter can' t. So, she gets a slice of light multi grain bread with peanut butter and jelly.

My daughter is good with finishing her lunch but my son always leaves some, so he gets to finish it while he gets back home from school. That lasts him until dinner time. My daughter will drink milk in the afternoon and a yogurt(flavored organic kind).

My daughter or son if still hungry when they get back home get to eat any vegetable that i' m cooking for the day. RAW, with some salt and pepper.

For dinner, i give them exactly the same thing. rice with daal, rasam, yogurt and definitely one cooked vegetable.

In addition to all of that mentioned above, i also keep lots of dry fruits at home...cranberries, blueberries, prunes, raisins, almonds, pine nuts, walnuts, pistachios. These add lots of good fat(HDL) to your body and plenty of fiber to process what you eat successfully. Fiber acts as a great filler for your stomach and can aid in weight loss tremendously.

We eat out once every week, so we are not really missing out or craving for any special kind of food.

So, there you go. I think a mother need to notice the strength and weekness of her family and work with it to create a harmonious and healthy family. My family is not completely healthy, but i' m working in that direction.

Food wise, this is what we do. Hope this helps. sunny replied. Yes it is a concern and no for any euipments which are or Adults best sport is swimming and any Physical activity like basket ball tennis football etc
Diet yes it shld be controlled
Eat more of Vegetables and brown rice
Veggies like soy bean tofu Spinach beansprous Brocoli & others preferably steam and give more soups warm which will clear the fats every day lunch an dinner warm soup at least for one monh and see the difference about sweets healthy sweets (yoghurt sweets, frit gummys etc dried fruis etc can be giiven in moderation